Mobeep and Travel Applications

Cross-platform application store Mobeep is looking to get a slice of the bustling Android and Symbian app markets. Over $29 billion worth of mobile applications (more than 48 billion apps) will be  downloaded in the next 3 years, according to tech research and consulting firm In-Stat. Mobeep — along with the growing number of app stores, wants a piece of that chunky pie.

Mobeep Website, with the options for Android or Symbian devices

Mobeep offers apps for two of the leading mobile operating systems around:Android and Symbian. (Image: Mobeep Website)

Timing: Everything

Mike Pearse, CEO of Mobeep and parent company Ozura World believes the multi-platform app store is in the right place at the right time.

Mobeep is a global product that reaches out to millions of users; nonetheless, we also strongly believe in localization of contents as we understand that our user base is unique and diverse. Mobeep’s expansion to other markets underlines our commitment to provide global consumers with an innovative user experience.

Smartphone and tablet companies continue to expand their businesses and product lines, providing plenty of space for the millions of applications (in all their OS flavors: Android, Windows Phone, Symbian, RIM, iOS) currently in the market and even those ongoing development. The field is wide open, and developers will need to churn out a lot of games and applications to cash in on the bonanza. In 2010, Symbian cornered 37.6% of the OS market while Android got 22.7%, according to Gartner Research.

Touting Travel Apps

Mobeep’s latest slant on the expanding apps store scene is to provide smartphone applications to help travelers. While the marketing blurb didn’t strike my interest, I got the gist of the message: Your mobile device can be smarter than you, and when traveling, install and use the right apps so you won’t get lost. They forgot to mention in the release that Mobeep carries these useful apps and offers other helpful applications as well. It’s easy to forget your own company when you’re excited about what you’re selling.

I popped over to Mobeep’s parent site (Ozura World) and everything became clear. No wonder Mobeep forgot to talk about itself, Ozura World is all over the place; they develop games and apps, offer collaboration and publishing, even incubation and investment (they might also offer team-building beach parties, I’m not sure). But they’re a very busy bunch, that’s for sure. Original game titles include: The Duel Online, Battle Of Knights, Kung Fu Fighters, Ghost Hunter RPG, 2188 Space Wars, Desert Rider and World Soccer.

Ozura World Website

Ozura World offers a whole range of products and services, from development, collaboration, publishing and investing. (Image: Ozura World Website)

Testing Mobeep and Travel Apps

I installed Mobeep from Android Marketplace (100+ DLs, one 4-star rating, three Google +1), but off the cuff I was wary of the numerous permissions it wanted me to approve. I did anyway — for testing purposes, but when I ran Mobeep, it wanted to download updates. It crashed after I clicked OK and made my phone freeze up. I promptly rebooted and gave Mobeep the boot. I’m sure other users will have more luck with this app. I don’t want to expose my phone or my information to any more harm, and I don’t see the need to replace or supplant the perfectly capable Android Market.

If anyone wants to read a good article about travel apps, check out the 5 Essential Singapore Travel Apps at Travel Wire Asia, where five useful apps help travelers navigate not just the terrain, but the restaurants and local language as well.